a story of when immigration gets personal

About the Blog

Illegal immigration is often viewed mostly as political issue. For the most part, that’s how I thought of it too. This all changed when I met my boyfriend, now husband, Young. All of a sudden, immigration became personal.

Young and his family came to the U.S. from South Korea when he was nine years old. He had a visa when he entered the U.S., but it expired shortly after his arrival. Once his visa expired, it could not be renewed, making his residency in the U.S. illegal.

I’ll be honest. I had never given much thought to immigration issues prior to starting my relationship with Young. Now they have become a regular part of my life.

In this blog, I’ll share how Young’s lack of residency affects our relationship, while outlining some of the nuts and bolts of the immigration process, as Young and I have just begun the long process of applying for permanent residency and eventually U.S. citizenship. This is a story with no guarantees and no definite outcome, but I invite you to join us on our journey as we navigate through life, love, and the U.S. immigration system.

And I challenge you to think about what happens when immigration gets personal.